The 10 Most Memorable Moments of the NBA Draft

But first let's talk about those shoes and that hair.

After months of anticipation, the NBA Draft has come and gone. As league commissioner Adam Silver said before the Minnesota Timberwolves took Kentucky center Karl-Anthony Towes with the first pick, "Which of these young men picked tonight will go on to alter the destiny of their franchise?" That might be a little dramatic, but it's this sense of hope and possibility that makes the draft so special year after year. That and the suits. Here are our favorite things that went down in the Barclays Center last night.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

10. The Knicks Do Something That Isn't Terrible

The Knicks aren't known for their front-office savvy. In fact, they're known for screwing up just about everything they do so spectacularly that it's hard to really even get upset about it anymore. Which is why when Phil Jackson was able to turn trigger-happy Tim Hardaway Jr. into Notre Dame's Jerian Grant, a guy who can do this...

https://vine.co/v/OjdaMYq0pTX

...it provided Knicks fans upset with the team's first pick (more on this later) with a surprising bit of consolation.

9. In Hinke's Plan, the Sixers Trust

The Sixers are in the midst of a controversial, years-long team-building strategy that involves sucking as immensely as possible so as to land high lottery pick after high lottery pick. For GM Sam Hinke, it's all about acquiring assets. Because it appeared the Lakers would take Duke forward Jhalil Okafor with the number-two pick, many slotted Ohio State guard D'Angelo Russell in at the three spot to Philadelphia. When Russell went to LA, though, things got tricky. Would the Sixers go ahead and take Okafor despite having two big men in Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid? Would they take Emmanuel Mudiay, whom Hinke had spent time in China evaluating? Would they trade out of the pick? They ended up taking Okafor, the biggest talent (and biggest asset) left on the board. Hinke has insisted that they will keep the pick, which means they may not have much faith in Embiid, who missed his rookie season due to injury.

8. Willie Cauley-Stein's Custom Piece and Chain

Getty Images

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

The Kings nabbed Kentucky big man Willie Cauley-Stein to pair up with (or potentially replace) fellow Wildcat Demarcus Cousins. The first thing you need to know about WCS is that he legally changed his middle name to "Trill." And as someone who legally changed his name to "Trill," he wore a custom-made WCS piece and chain up to the podium. It's never too early to start thinking about your personal brand.

7. The Heat Steal Justise Winslow at 10

How did this happen? The dynamic scoring guard who helped lead Duke to a national championship somehow, for some reason, slid all the way to the Miami Heat at number 10. It was easily the steal of the draft, and June 25, 2015, is likely a day that the teams that passed on him will come to rue. For Winslow, it's a perfect situation. He'll be on the beach, he'll be on a team with some pieces already in place, and he'll be able to learn from one of the shooting guards to whom he's most often been compared: Dwyane Wade.

6. The Hair

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Last year everyone got a kick out of 10th pick Elfred Payton's outrageous hair, but it looks like his shaved-sides, all-on-top do was a sign of things to come. This year's draft class didn't let it grow as high as Payton, but the spirit was still there, as almost everyone who strode to the podium seemed especially top-heavy. Lakers guard Nick Young, a.k.a. Swaggy P, who rocks a similar cut, took notice.

5. The D'Angelo Russell Era Begins in LA

It seemed like a done deal that the Lakers would be taking Jhalil Okafor at 2, but yesterday word got out that they might be taking Ohio State guard D'Angelo Russell instead, which they did. There will be plenty of elite big men they can be lure to California in free agency, and if the Warriors winning the title is any indication, you've gotta have playmaking guards. Russell is an elite passer with through-the-roof marketability, and LA is a perfect fit. This guy certainly thinks so:

4. Kelly Oubre Jr.'s Shoes

Future Wizard Kelly Oubre Jr. made what was easily the flashiest sartorial choice of the night. Be careful with those things.

ESPN

3. Frank "The Tank" Kaminsky

Dear basketball gods: Please, PLEASE don't let the Naismith winner from Wisconsin turn into an Adam Morrison-esqe bust for Charlotte's NBA franchise. We need Kaminsky in our lives every day. We need press conferences, we need endorsements, we need him to be a star. Last night he showed why when he adorned the lining of his jacket—a draft-day move that is especially popular in the NFL—with a pair of tanks:

2. The Color Red

To some extent, this has to have been coordinated...

1. The Knicks Take the Big Euro Guy

With the draft being held in Brooklyn and the Knicks holding a high lottery pick, the biggest question of the night was what the beleaguered franchise would do to try to get back on track. For those of us who relish in the misery of Knicks fans, nothing could have topped the team's selection of mysterious Latvian big man Kristaps Porzingis. After Russell and Okafor were taken at 2 and 3, many felt the Knicks would trade out of the fourth spot, but instead they went the risky Euro route. Porzingis is a seven-footer who can shoot the lights out, but many believe he lacks the strength to compete in the paint versus NBA competition. Fans were not happy:

It's always a disappointment when your team spends a high pick on a European guy with a weird name whom no one knows anything about, especially when that player is deemed to be a year or two away from making any sort of impact. But to many NBA insiders, the pick was a smart one. The Knicks aren't going to be good for a few years anyway, and Porzingis was easily the most skilled big man in the draft. His shooting touch compares to that of fellow European seven-footer Dirk Nowitzki, whose career turned out all right. Kristaps has even pre-acclimated himself to American culture...

"He has a great sense of American culture," a Kristaps Porzingis teammate told me. "He goes on WorldStarHipHop every day."